{"id":22701,"date":"2018-08-15T11:38:39","date_gmt":"2018-08-15T15:38:39","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/henrypayne.com\/?p=22701"},"modified":"2018-08-15T11:38:39","modified_gmt":"2018-08-15T15:38:39","slug":"payne-lamborghini-supercar-meets-lamborghini-tractor","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/2018\/08\/payne-lamborghini-supercar-meets-lamborghini-tractor","title":{"rendered":"Payne: Lamborghini supercar meets Lamborghini tractor"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Lambo<\/p>\n

The exotic Lamborghini\u2019s engine roared in my ears as I crested a hill on a remote farm road and shifted into fifth gear. The great beast lurched forward. My foot to the floor, the speedometer hit\u00a0… 31 miles per hour.<\/p>\n

Didn\u2019t know Lamborghini made tractors, did you?<\/p>\n

Long before it crafted greyhounds like the Countach, Huracan and\u00a0Aventador, the Italian marque began as a post-World War II tractor-maker. Today, Lamborghini\u2019s sports car and tractor operations are under different ownership, but the bull logo still, improbably, graces the hoods of diesel-powered tractors and V-12 supercars in Europe.<\/p>\n

But the only place in the U.S. you can find them both under the same roof is in Metamora, Michigan. Detroit media entrepreneur Kevin Adell has one of the most eclectic auto collections in the country with a stable that includes everything from a 1965 Shelby Mustang GT350 to one of the made-for-TV “Batman” cars to a 2017 Rolls-Royce Dawn.<\/p>\n

The 2017 Lamborghini Aventador SV supercar and\u00a02017 Lambo Nitro 130 T4i\u00a0<\/a>farm tractor fit right in.<\/p>\n

\u201cI love Lamborghinis and I knew they were originally a tractor-maker and still manufacturing overseas,\u201d says Adell, who ordered his Nitro through an Italian dealer. \u201cI wrote them a letter in Italian and it took a year to get it over here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Among Adell’s properties is Detroit 910 AM talk radio station where I broadcast my weekly \u201cCar Radio\u201d program. We car guys get along, and this summer I had the opportunity to test his raging-bull bookends.<\/p>\n

They have almost nothing in common except purpose: a commitment to get you from one place to another as quickly as possible.<\/p>\n

The Lamborghini Aventador is simply the most coveted sports car on the street today. No matter where I go, no matter who I meet, when someone learns that I review cars, the question is always the same.<\/div>\n

Neighborhood kid: Have you driven a Lamborghini Aventador?
\nMedia colleague: Have you driven a Lamborghini Aventador?
\nFellow racer: Have you driven a Lamborghini Aventador?<\/p>\n

With its wicked, F-22 Raptor-like angular styling, scissor doors\u00a0and 740-horsepower V-12 furnace, the Aventador puts the \u201cexotic\u201d into exotic car.<\/p>\n

While walking busy downtown Vancouver last year, I observed a black Aventador growl up to a stoplight.\u00a0Everyone<\/em>\u00a0in the four-way intersection stopped to admire it. It\u2019s a sci-fi movie celebrity.<\/p>\n

Adell\u2019s yellow and black-trimmed SV dials up the wow factor. The SV \u2014\u00a0short for Superveloce (translation: Super Fast) \u2014\u00a0is the track-focused, performance variant of the Aventador. Light-weighted by 110 pounds with 50 more horses then the base bull\u2019s already insane 691, it bristles with exposed carbon fiber and a tall rear wing. Only 600 were built.<\/p>\n

Driving it through Metro Detroit is like Jennifer Lawrence walking through Times Square. In her form-fitting Mystique Marvel suit.<\/p>\n

Pedestrians gawk. Rubberneckers pull alongside for long glimpses. Muscle cars crowd its rear bumper to see if they can keep up. Then I push the throttle to the floor, the V-12\u2019s afterburners light, and the SV disappears like Han Solo\u2019s Millennium Falcon into hyperspace.<\/p>\n

No less satisfying is testing the Aventador\u2019s grip around interstate cloverleafs. With its stiff-carbon tub and all-wheel drive claws, the car sticks like painted lines to asphalt.\u00a0Its chassis stays flat as a board even as g-forces claw at my ribs under increasing throttle.<\/p>\n

As you might expect from an Italian supermodel, the Aventador is defiantly eccentric. Climbing in between the high-sill carbon tub, scissor doors\u00a0and squashed roof requires a giant shoehorn. Once inside you can\u2019t see outside. The windshield is as shallow as a Corvette with zero rear visibility save mirrors and a (helpful) backup dash cam.<\/p>\n

There are no cup holders, of course. With cornering loads over 1-G, \u00a0who can sip coffee? The cockpit is optimized for track and driver. Like a Porsche 911, every button (even windows) is\u00a0on the loooong console for easy access. I lift a hatch cover to access the red starter button \u2014 you know, like the president\u2019s nuclear launch button.<\/p>\n

The Lambo\u2019s thrust is ballistic.<\/p>\n

Using launch control in manual-only Corsa\u00a0(\u201crace\u201d mode), the Adventador explodes forward. The V-12 mounted amidships \u2014 no turbos or superchargers here \u2014 howls to a manic 8,500-rpm redline. My right fingers twitch off lightning-quick transmission shifts, each one belting me in the back. But with all this violence channeled through all-wheel-drive (unlike rear-wheel drive\u00a0700-Horsepower Club members like the McLaren 720S and Corvette ZR1)\u00a0the traction is eerily stable. It’s like Cedar Point\u2019s Top Thrill roller coaster on rails.<\/p>\n

Sixty miles an hour blows by in 2.7 seconds. The quarter-mile takes just 10.7. In addition to Corsa and Sport (automatic), the stiff, raucous Lambo has a rarely used Strada (street) mode for daily driving. Aventador\u2019s natural habitat is the track.<\/p>\n

Nitro\u2019s natural habitat is the farm.<\/p>\n

It, too, is driver-focused. Make that farmer-focused. The manual five-speed tractor\u2019s high cabin is even more complex than the Aventador with two gear-shifters, two throttles (foot and hand), three instruments screens and a crowded console.<\/p>\n

With controls needed to maneuver the tractor and attached accessories like front-end loaders and grass cutters, the cockpit bristles with buttons and joysticks that makes the Aventador look elementary. And a John Deere seem common.<\/p>\n

Nitro\u2019s console is sculpted, the seats contoured, the cabin lined with auto-climate controlled, AC vents. No Aventador suede or leather her, but still a premium interior\u00a0worthy of the bull logo.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s performance also screams Lamborghini.<\/p>\n

While not the fastest tractor in the world (that honor goes to England\u2019s JCB Fastrac which can reach 40 mph), the fuel-efficient, 480-torque,\u00a0diesel Nitro 130<\/a>\u00a0is plenty quick. The 28-inch-tall by 14-inch-wide Aventador rears are huge, but they\u2019re dwarfed by the tractor\u2019s 40-inch by 17.3-inch rears that anchor a sophisticated four-wheel drive\u00a0air suspension.<\/p>\n

In this mechanized jackrabbit, I was able to maintain a fast clip around Metamora\u2019s ox-kart roads.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis tractor is built for speed and longevity on big farms,\u201d says Alvin Fergson, who farms across four southeast Michigan counties. \u201cIf I had one of these, I\u2019d put front-loaders on it and really make time moving rocks, soil, you name it.\u201d<\/p>\n

At the Detroit auto show this year, I attended the unveiling of the wicked, high-riding, all-wheel drive, 650-horsepower Lamborghini Urus \u2014 the brand\u2019s first SUV.<\/p>\n

It might be the Metamora love-child of Aventador and Nitro.<\/p>\n

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne. Catch \u201cCar Radio with Henry Payne\u201d from noon-2 p.m. Saturdays on 910 AM Superstation.<\/p>\n

2017 Lamborghini Aventador<\/strong><\/p>\n

Vehicle type: Mid-engine, rear-wheel drive, two-passenger supercar<\/p>\n

Price: $493,095 base<\/p>\n

Powerplant: 6.5-liter V-12<\/p>\n

Power: 740 horsepower, 509\u00a0pound-feet torque<\/p>\n

Transmission: 7-speed automatic<\/p>\n

Performance: 0-60 mph, 2.7\u00a0seconds (Car and Driver); top speed: 217\u00a0mph<\/p>\n

Weight: 4,010\u00a0pounds<\/p>\n

Fuel economy: EPA fuel economy: 11\u00a0city\/18 highway\/13 combined<\/p>\n

Report card<\/strong><\/p>\n

Highs: Jaw-dropping looks; nuclear V-12<\/p>\n

Lows: Can’t see out of it; cop magnet<\/p>\n

Overall: 4\u00a0stars<\/p>\n

2017\u00a0Lamborghini Nitro<\/strong><\/p>\n

Vehicle type: Front-engine, four-wheel drive, two-passenger farm tractor<\/p>\n

Price: $94,600 base ($146,000 Nitro 130 T-4i\u00a0as tested)<\/p>\n

Powerplant: 3.6-liter, turbocharged 4-cylinder diesel<\/p>\n

Power: 127 horsepower, 480 pound-feet torque<\/p>\n

Transmission: 5-speed manual or 3 stage Powershift<\/p>\n

Performance: 0-31 mph (NA); top speed: 31 mph<\/p>\n

Weight: 11,023 pounds<\/p>\n

Fuel economy: EPA fuel economy (NA); 43-gallon tank<\/p>\n

Report card<\/strong><\/p>\n

Highs: Comfortable cabin environment; very maneuverable<\/p>\n

Lows: No scissor doors<\/p>\n

Overall: 4\u00a0stars<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The exotic Lamborghini\u2019s engine roared in my ears as I crested a hill on a remote farm road and shifted into fifth gear. The great beast lurched forward. My foot to the floor, the speedometer hit\u00a0… 31 miles per hour. Didn\u2019t know Lamborghini made tractors, did you? Long before it crafted greyhounds like the Countach, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[7],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22701"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=22701"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/22701\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=22701"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=22701"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/henrypayne.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=22701"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}